Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,214: Mae (Assassin, The Vintage Collection)

MAE (Assassin)
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure
Item No.: Asst. E7763 No. F9790
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #327
Includes: Cloth cloak, face mask, 2 daggers
Action Feature: Backpack and holster are removable
Retail: $16.99
Availability: September 2024
Appearances: The Acolyte

Bio: Set at the end of theHigh Republic, a former Padawan reunites with her Jedi Master to investigate a series of crimes, but the forces they confront turn out to be far more sinister and personal than anticipated. (Taken from the figure's cardback. Yes, it's the same non-bio Osha got.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Entertainment Earth now!

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Commentary: In many respects, it's a shame people didn't show up for The Acolyte. The story will never be finished, the figure line will likely go underserved, and fans will miss some of Hasbro's best work like this Mae (Assassin) figure. I really liked the retro Kenner one, and this one is also quite excellent. The only thing she has gong against her is that she isn't from a Star Wars that most people bothered to watch... which seems like most of them, nowadays.

Mae looks just like Osha, but different. Both are played by the same actress and Hasbro uses different plastic wigs, but similar paint. Both have glossy eyes with a lively sparkle, and shiny lips that give her a little more life than your average figure. Mae's hair is a little longer in front, plus she has an optional mask you can use to change up her look. You have to remove the black cloth around her neck - which I found tricky - by sliding it forward, and then the mask clamps over her neck without your having to decapitate her. Nice work, Hasbro, I wish there was a manual or a picture explaining this to me before I tried popping her noggin off. The mask fits well, and Hasbro did a nice job with some very tiny, fine detail in her hair. I have no snark here, Hasbro did a good job.

The costume was similarly well-executed, with sculptors and painters translating cloth and metal - with signs of wear and actual tear - to the figure's limbs quite nicely. You're getting your money's worth with this one, with so many textures and moving parts that don't seem to clash. The elbows swivel well, the wrists easily hold the tiny daggers, and despite having a lot of moving bits she stands without falling over too easily. I especially like her cloth cloak, as the hood sits on her head nicely. My one complaint with the figure was that my sample was assembled oddly, with the lower part of her robes twisted funny and it took me some doing to finagle the waist, skirt, and legs in the right position after opening the package.

My main gripe about this figure - indeed, most figures - is that The Acolyte seems to be doomed to a small figure line and we probably won't get The Stranger or the other characters from the show that would make it even more fun to collect. If Kenner only made Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca in 1978 I don't think we'd be talking about toy collecting today. If you don't have any thrust behind your figure line, there's no reason to collect it. You'll be missing out, but probably also feeling good about not buying as much stuff to keep around. Hopefully Hasbro and Lucasfilm will build out bigger collections for future shows, especially as The Acolyte currently has a grand total of checks notes one 3 3/4-inch figure now.

Both Mae and Osha were packed at one per case, and their prices seem to be dipping. I assume there will be units at Ross or Ollie's this year, and I'll probably buy a second of each if the price is right because of Mae's choker and easily lost daggers. If she winds up around $3.99, it's cheaper than buying another one later and paying for shipping. Even if you didn't watch (or don't care about) The Acolyte, it's a great figure with amazing detail and is a handy way to get an Amandla Stenberg figure or two if you're a fan of her work. Also this is one of the best costumes in the Disney+ era of Star Wars, and one of Hasbro's best figures of said work. Maybe they're showing something fancier at Toy Fair in a few weeks, but this is a high bar and I don't assume it will be easily surpassed. Go get one if you see her, you're good for it.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,217: February 20, 2025

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,210: Mae (Assassin, The Retro Collection)

MAE (ASSASSIN)
The Retro Collection 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure
Item No.: No. G0386
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: n/a
Includes: Vinyl cape, 2 knives, another 5 figures
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $59.99
Availability: October 2024
Appearances: The Acolyte

Bio: The Star Wars Retro Collection is inspired by the original 1970s Star Wars figures and features original figure design and detailing! Continue your collection from a galaxy far, far away. (Stolen from the marketing copy. Packaging has no bio.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Entertainment Earth now!

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Commentary: A ninja! Well, more or less - for whatever reason we haven't had a lot of figures that make me say that we're dealing with the arts of ninjutsu, or at least its American pop culture ideal, in Star Wars. Mae (Assassin) does a pretty good job of taking a good costume and giving us a compelling figure. Osha [FOTD #3,191] looks great, but Mae - despite being a twin - share zero parts. I assume Hasbro broke some law of toy manufacturing to bring us this much variety. She has two new knives, a vinyl cape, and a lot of sculpted detail.

Mae's hair is secretly amazing. Because of the vinyl cape, her separately molded plastic wig looks like it's the same as Osha. If you slide the cape off, you'll see it's actually a very long piece. The vinyl cape also obfuscates all of Hasbro's hard work sculpting what may be one of the most fascinating costumes in recent Retro memory. She has chain mail under her top, as well as extra armor over her chest for bonus protection. Is it any good against a lightsaber? We'll never know. Her boots are shiny but don't look like there's much going on - but she has enough belts, wristbands, and cloth elements draped over her person to make up for it. There's a mask covering her face, and from behind (sans cape) there are lots of sculpted cloth bits, hair, and other bits and pieces.

New Retro figures tend to eschew inner-leg detail on "gown pants." Most new figures are just flat - but Mae has some exposed pants inside her right leg. I appreciate the extra unnecessary detail because this sort of thing adds cost to a figure, but somehow, did not cause the price of the set to exceed the very fair $60.

Her accessories are good, but not amazing. I wish Hasbro went with a cloth cloak rather than the vinyl cape, but at least the vinyl cape slides off so you can see the fantastic costume. Mine came pre-wrinkled, and I'm a little scared to heat it with a hair dryer or hot water because I haven't tested this material under those conditions. (I should have bought a spare Reva or Grand Inquisitor as a guinea pig.) The stock photos of the vinyl cape look amazing, but the reality is that it feels about as good as any old Kenner plastic accessory. It's thin, it's fine. Her two swords also look good, and both hands can grip without dropping them. In short, Hasbro executed this figure almost to the very best of their ability. The only way I think Hasbro can improve this figure - and indeed future figures - is to get rid of the inner "tray" in the packaging as it seems to distort the vinyl capes and wrinkle them. I haven't seen this happen to actual 1978-1985 Kenner figures - these trays are a menace. Still, even without the cape, this is one of the very best of these figures. I didn't expect to love it - sure it looked cool, but I was continuously impressed the more I looked at her. It's a shame she won't have more stories, but I guess that means I can have her show up pretty much anywhere my toy box can travel.

This is a good figure. Even if you threw your arms up at the show, this is one of those toys I wish I had as a child. Maybe it wouldn't be everybody's favorite, but who wouldn't have wanted a cool Star Wars assassin with all of this detail? The costume is as good as anything we saw out of Jabba's entourage, and it has more textures and materials than just about anything else we got out of Retro in the past few years. I'm not going to recommend this figure to you if you're not on board with The Retro Collection, but I'm going to suggest you pick this set up if Kenner is your jam. She's not a cool alien, that's true - but as human costumes go this may be the best to hit this format. I know you're not going to listen to me, but don't skip this set. Despite it being 50% Jedi, it's still really good.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,213: February 6, 2025